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Europe travel: Cruising the Loire Valley in search of that perfect French moment

Amboise was the final home of Leonardo da Vinci. The views of the Loire Valley are tremendous. (dreamstime)

Sharing a perfect moment at Caves Duhard by the Loire in Angers with wine, strawberries and goats cheese. (Nikki Bayley)

By Nikki BayleySpecial to the Star

Mon., Sept. 24, 2012

SANCERRE, FRANCE—It was when I was looking at a map of the Loire Valley that I realized why so much of it seemed familiar: Vouvray, Muscadet, Sancerre, I’d drunk the lot!

I was about to take a trip through my dream wine list. After picking up a scratched silver Renault, perfect for the cavalier attitude the French have towards parallel parking, I set off towards my favourite dry white. I mean, the beautiful town of Sancerre.

I cruised along the narrow two-lane road enjoying the peace and bucolic views. The vivid green flatlands on either side of me, the result of unseasonable summer rain, were punctuated by golden flower-filled fields. About 50 minutes later, Sancerre appeared through a heat haze, perched high on a hill. Vines lined the hillside, straight as newly-combed wet hair.

For such a world-famous name, Sancerre is a surprisingly small village, made of twisty-turny cobbled streets, lined with sandy-grey brick houses topped with terracotta tiles. Ignore the cars and it could have been 100 years ago. I sat in the square, drank the first of many delicious glasses of Pouilly-Fumé and Sancerre, made just a mile or so away, and gleefully tweeted a photo.

I decided the next morning to take a trip to see where my wine had come from. Wine makers for 10 generations, the Henri Bourgeois vineyards are perched on a slope in Chavignol. Just down the hill are the local cheesemongers, who sell the best selection of the tempting Crottin de Chavignol, which pairs wonderfully with the dry white wine of the region.

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I took a tour, from the modern bottling and labeling area, out to the vivid green vines and down to the ancient cave where the wine is stored in barrels, before enjoying a degustation in the smart designer-y tasting room.

After popping into the cheese-makers for a greedy amount of crottin, my next stop was Bourges. Some visit to see its perfectly preserved medieval quarter, others flock to the gothic 12th century cathedral St-Etienne.

But, for me, this was a pilgrimage of the taste buds. Found in cocktail bars and coffee shops the world over, Monin syrup comes in more than 100 flavours and it’s been made in Bourges since 1912.

My holy grail was Atout Fruit, (10 rue de Sarrebourg) the only place in the world where you can buy every flavour. The shelves shimmered with bottles of every colour of the rainbow. I left with a clinking bag — speculoos, apple pie, creme brulee — my morning latte just got a whole lot more exciting.

I’d planned to spend the night in Blois, which turned out to be exactly the kind of town that, after an hour of pottering along its pretty cobbled streets, you start to think, “Hmm, maybe I could move here. Set up that shell-painting shop I always dreamed of. Learn how to play petanque.”

The thousand-year-old chateau, ex-home to kings and queens of France, perches high above the town. Lush gardens circle its base and it is home to one of the most fun museums I have ever visited. The Maison de la Magie features three floors of tricks, illusions and magical toys to play with. I was entranced. Where else would you see Houdini’s wand and learn how to make a coin disappear behind someone’s ear?

That night was warm. I happily wandered the narrow streets until I found a tiny bar with just the right kind of jazz floating out. I soaked up the atmosphere over a generous cheese plate and a few glasses of an ambrosial rosé made a few miles away.

Far later than I’d planned the next day, I decided a drive through the sun-dappled moss-green forêt d’Amboise was just what I needed to blow away the cobwebs.

Amboise was Leonardo da Vinci’s last home; he died at the chateau Clos Luce in 1519. It’s been turned into a family-friendly museum. The gardens are hung with large models of his work and, inside the chateau, his entire amazing life is represented: from art to engineering. My highlights were seeing models of the helicopter and car he invented.

Alas, my trip to Amboise fell on a fete day and, in true French style, the town was closed. I walked alongside the swift-moving Loire until I stumbled upon the Caves Duhard (Rue Rocher des Violettes), a wine tasting cave that has a history stretching back three generations.

Monsieur Duhard and I decided that, fun though it might be to sit in the 16th-century Troglodyte cave, we’d rather enjoy the sun at a rickety picnic table by the river. “It’s not the wine that’s precious” he said, as I failed miserably at that slurpy-sippy wine-tasting thing and went for a glug instead. “It’s the moment.”

I bit into one of the miniature sugar-sweet local strawberries that matched the Vouvray to perfection and nodded.

The late-afternoon sun tossed diamonds on the water, its golden rays warmed my skin and the good wine made me feel giddy with glee. This was exactly what I had come to find, that perfect French moment.

Nikki Bayley is a freelance writer based in London, England.

JUST THE FACTS

ARRIVING From Paris, transfer by train to Orleans (65 minutes) or Bourges (a little less than two hours). raileurope.ca

SLEEPING Sancerre Le Cep en Sancerrois: Three family-friendly spacious suites are available at this newly-renovated bed and breakfast in the heart of town in a pleasingly-ancient stone ex-rectory. $95. lecepensancerrois.com.

Blois La Maison de Thomas: Fabulously modern and stylish rooms in this town-centre B&B minutes from the chateau. Book in for a wine tasting with Monsieur Thomas, who has a small wine cave in the cellar. $105. lamaisondethomas.fr.

Amboise Au Charme Rabelasien: There are three boutique-hotel-like B&Bs at this ex-girls’ school. The Room Nature is the pick of the bunch, out in the shaded garden next to the small pool. $207. au-charme-rabelaisien.com?

Les Sens: Classic French with a modern twist and hugely popular with the locals. Leave room for the flaming chocolate-vanilla, caramel liquor-soaked crème brûlée. Three courses with wine, $50. 4 Place Henri Mirpied, Bourges.

L’Embarcadère: A 15-minute stroll along the river out of town, but worth it. Ultra-fresh seafood and dazzling deserts. Set menus from $26. 16 Quai Ulysse Besnard, Blois. lembarcadere.fr.

Anne de Bretagne: On the ramp to the chateau, this perfect people-watching spot specializes in savoury and sweet crêpes. Menus from $12. 1 Rampe du Château, Amboise. restaurant-annedebretagne-amboise.fr

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